Mashed potato pancake stacks with turkey and cranberry syrup recipe

Brandi is natural born food lover of anything from gourmet cheeses and wine down to plain baked breads. When not in the kitchen cooking, she loves to be outdoors, especially near the ocean. She puts her focus mainly on healthy organic ea...

A fun way to get rid of leftovers

One of the greatest things about the holidays is, of course, the food. What isn't so great is the mounds of leftover dishes. Here we get creative with a super fun recipe that uses not one but three leftover dishes.

This recipe is not only a great way to use leftovers it's fun to look at. Here we use mashed potatoes to create little mashed potato pancake stacks layered with leftover turkey then topped off with a tangy cranberry syrup.

Mashed potato pancake stacks with turkey and cranberry syrup recipe

For the cranberry syrup

Yields about 2 cups

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups leftover cranberry sauce (homemade preferably)

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

Directions:

In a small saucepot combine the cranberry sauce and the orange juice. Simmer for five minutes or until the sauce is heated.

Add the sauce to a blender and blend until the mixture is smooth. If the syrup is too thick add more orange juice until you reach consistancy that you like.

For the mashed potato pancake stacks with turkey

Yields 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

3 cups leftover mashed potatoes

1 cup grated cheese such as cheddar or pepper Jack

1/4 cup fresh chives, finely chopped

Salt and pepper to season

Olive oil or cooking spray

2 cups leftover turkey, shredded or chopped and reheated

Fresh chopped parsley for garnish (optional)

Directions:

In a large bowl mix the mashed potatoes, cheese, chives and salt and pepper well. Cover and chill for one hour. (This makes the mashed potatoes easier to handle.)

In a large frying pan over medium heat lightly coat the pan with olive oil or cooking spray. Begin forming small spoonfuls of the mashed potato mixture into patties that resemble pancakes until you have used all of the mashed potatoes. Add several of the patties to the pan careful not to overcrowd. Cook the patties for five minutes on each side or until they are golden brown.

On a plate alternate layers of mashed potato pancakes and turkey to create the stacked look. Garnish with fresh parsley and drizzle with the cranberry syrup.